Souderton's schools plan worries parents

April 18, 2008|By Charles Malinchak Special to The Morning Call - Freelance

Parents told the Souderton Area School Board they're concerned that moving to an all-middle school system in the district will mean losing foreign language for seventh-graders, and asked whether staff would be reduced and if there will be more computer equipment available.

The academic component of the switch to middle schools, scheduled for 2009-10, was aired at a public forum Wednesday that drew more than 40 people.

District Secondary Education Director Jack Silva and three principals explained highlights of the plan, which would create two middle schools of Grades 6 to 8 and push Grade 9 into the high school.

Losing the exploratory foreign language in seventh grade also caused concern for School Director Victor Verbeke, who told the board, "I think we need to explore whether that is a direction we want to go."

"This is the first time the board has seen the proposal, and that a program is being eliminated is something that we need to take a look at," Verbeke said. He said the district ranks low in the percentage of graduating seniors with foreign language education.

"Our kids, frankly, deserve better," he said.

But Silva said foreign languages would be offered in eighth grade and through high school as an elective. By the time a student graduates, he or she will attain the required level of foreign language education of their choosing, he said.

District Superintendent Charles Amuso took offense to Verbeke's remark and said staff working on the new plan has done a good job under the budget requirements the board set.

"It's unfair to tell us that we need to add to this. That's what you have implied," he said.

Board President Bernard Currie said, "It's a little late in the game to put another item on the table. It may be doing ourselves a disservice."

One highlight of the new plan is a team-teaching technique in which groups of students are taught core subjects such as reading, writing, science and social studies by a teacher working with another to mingle the subjects so they relate to one another.

But math would be separated from the team approach because Silva said it's usually the subject with which students need more attention or need to move ahead if they excel.

School Director Paul Baumgartner said the same could be said for science.

"How do you come to the conclusion why math and not science?" Baumgartner asked.

Indian Crest Junior High School Assistant Principal Tom Ferlick said math requires a rigorous schedule and simply doesn't fit with the team approach, while science does. If a student shows significant aptitude in a science, Ferlick said, there's room in the team approach to move ahead. Also, Ferlick said, as they move up the grades, class times are longer.

Regarding computer equipment and reduced staff, Silva said the two middle schools would have more than 200 new laptops with new peripherals.

Staffing would be largely unchanged exception for possibly four teachers who need to get certified in particular areas to be part of the new system, Silva said. He did not specify the subject area of those teachers.

Silva said the priorities of the new system are team-teaching, expecting high achievement levels from all students, high reading abilities, building a better bridge between middle school and high school and a student firmly knowing they could go to their guidance counselor with a problem or question.

"The next year we will be developing all the procedures we need to execute the big move," he said. "But we are onto something good here. Something very good."